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Playground Activities for Preschoolers

The National Child Information and Technical Assistance Center reports as of 2010 that 17 percent of the nation's children,or 12.5 million, are overweight. To combat this, preschools include time in the schedule for children to go the playground for exercise. Children need to use this time to stretch and work out their muscles. There are many games that children can play on the playground that promote exercise such as Simon Says, relay races, Hula hoop activities and a shape game.

Simon Says
- This game allows the teacher to decide what movements the children will do, and it teaches children to follow directions as well. Form the children into a line standing side by side. The teacher will then call out a command by saying "Simon Says" first. For example, if the teacher wants the students to run to the slide, she will say "Simon says run to the slide." If the student does not follow the command, she is out of the game. If the teacher does not say "Simon says" first then the children are not supposed to follow the command. If a child follows a command that is not preceded by "Simon says" then she is out of the game. The last student left in the game is the winner.
Relay Races
- Having the children participate in relay races makes a great workout for them. Split the children into two teams and have each team form a straight line, one behind the other. The child at the front of each line races first. Give the racers instructions on how to do the race, such as jumping, skipping, clapping or hopping. When the teacher says "go," the racers will race to where the teacher is holding out her hands. Whichever player touches the teacher's hand first wins a point for her team. The players then go to the back of their team's line. The team with the most points at the end wins.
Hula Hoops
- The different forms of using the Hula hoops allow the children to stretch out their wrists and hips. Hand each child a Hula hoop. Show the children the different ways to use the hoops, such as on either wrist or the waist. Let each child spend time trying out the different ways of using the hoops until he finds the one he is comfortable with. Make a contest where each child spins the hoop any way he likes, and whoever can keep going the longest wins.
Shape Game
- This game helps a preschool child exercise his body as well as his brain.Take chalk and make a large square, triangle, circle and star on the ground. Instruct the students to do specific commands such as "place your right foot in the circle." Have the children follow other commands as well, such as hopping or jumping in the shapes. Give each child a turn to be the instructor and have him come up with the commands for his classmates.

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